Just thought I'd drop in and say hello. I've been watching the forum on and off about "The Gathering" and am really looking forward to the festivities. You guys don't know me but I'm Ken's cousin, Andy. For the past twelve or so years, I've spent every fall visiting the Guntersville State Park and I know you guys will love the lake. I go to visit with relatives, to fish and to exercize my photography muscles on the scenery. My family and I will be about the only park visitors that are not directly involved with the Glen-L shindig. We'll be the folks in cabin 432.

I wanted to mention one thing to the people who will be hauling in their boats for the event. Be sure you're load is secure and you're not overcapacity in any way when you decide to haul it over the mountain. You shouldn't have any trouble with hiway 431 on the way in. If you're coming up from the south, there is a long downhill slope in Albertville as you come off the mountaintop. There's plenty of warning and it's a good modern road.

Hiway 227 out of Guntersville, over the mountain and into the park is another matter alltogether. With a heavy load, a light rain, and a few high speed log trucks sharing the roadway, it can be a real knuckle whitener. Beautiful scenery when the leaves are in full color - but you'll soon notice all the scrunched guardrails, the sudden narrowing of the road, the ruts in the shoulder where others have wiped out and busted off warning signs that will give you the hint to be careful.

Having lived in Florida most of my driving career, taking a trip into the mountains is a little adventurous for me. My primary vehicle for daily use is a bicycle so navigating a big road hog like an Expedition through that little twisty-windy road the first time was a real wake up call.

Approaching the park from the north is a little less treacherous but the roads are still sometimes marginal and can cause a large topheavy load to get tippy.

I'll stay in touch. If anybody has any questions that I might be able to help you with, let me know. We'll be rolling in sometime in the afternoon of the 26th, which is the start of our two weeks vacation. Drive safe and I'll see y'all on the mountain.

Andy,
If you been following the forum awhile, you know Leakcheck gets tossed into the lake! Why dont we use him for a depth finder for my boat? Toss him off the dock, and if he MUST swim, then water is deep enough for my boat.

So, if I drag a 30' trailer from Atlanta, what is the best road?
Also, I heard that the road FROM Chattenooga was a good road. If Chatenooga is only 1.5hrs above Atlanta, and Chatennooga is 45 min from Guntersville, why not loop up to Chatenooga?

I understand that Atlanta is 3 hrs to Guntersville and bad road at the same time.

kens wrote:So, if I drag a 30' trailer from Atlanta, what is the best road?Also, I heard that the road FROM Chattenooga was a good road. If Chatenooga is only 1.5hrs above Atlanta, and Chatennooga is 45 min from Guntersville, why not loop up to Chatenooga?

I understand that Atlanta is 3 hrs to Guntersville and bad road at the same time.

You could do that. It is a lot out of your way though. There's some sneaky back ways that cut some time but they may defeat the purpose if you're trying to stay on good roads. 227 is a mess no matter which way you come in, though. The main reason I mentioned it was to give the heads up to people who have never driven it before. I could see someone driving hard all day and getting into G'ville at night, just enough rain to slick up the roads and hitting that mountain without a warning of what to expect. You shouldn't have any trouble hunching that rig of yours over the hill, kens but I wouldn't recommend you try it with that old mail jeep for a tractor. Brakes is the operative word here. Being able to stop all that weight in a controlled fashion on a steep turn. Think of the steepest tightest exit ramp you've ever tried to drive over the speed limit on. Gets all them tools rolling across the floorboards and spills the cheetoes out of the heater vents. That kind of thing.

Use Google Earth and the cursor to measure the incline of the mountain part of 227. Start out at the feed mill where 227 crosses the river near the railroad tracks on the townside of the hill. Follow the road with your cursor to where it disappears in the trees. Watch the altimeter down at the bottom of the screen. Steep, ain't it? Look at them curves. Don't let the road catch you off-guard. You're gonna pull hard to get up to the top and you're gonna burn the rinds off your brakes coming back down. Your trailer has new brakes but some guys might want to take a look at theirs before taking the chance.

The way I feel is, I see so many old codgers driving them monster deluxe motorhomes pullin' Jeep Cherokees up and down the hill going to and from the park all the time. If they can do it, anybody can. Just be sure your geared up and ready for the challenge.

My truck towed the RV trailer without problems, it was 7000lbs. The boat will be half that, with surge brakes on both axles. I wonder if the boat will be heavy enough to even activate the surge brakes.? The boat arriving Guntersville will come in at 2000lbs. Trailer and its brakes are made for 5000lbs.

kens wrote:My truck towed the RV trailer without problems, it was 7000lbs. The boat will be half that, with surge brakes on both axles. I wonder if the boat will be heavy enough to even activate the surge brakes.? The boat arriving Guntersville will come in at 2000lbs. Trailer and its brakes are made for 5000lbs.

That's why I say you won't have any trouble with your rig, kens. Not everyone has a big ol' snarfly diesel pullin' a brand new trailer. If you're like the guys I see around here who have been dunkin' their brakes in the briny waters, and haven't driven over a hill higher than a I-95 overpass in two or three years, they might want to check to make sure the thing's gonna stop when they want it to. Plus, they may be pullin' their big ol' boat with something like a Izuzu or a Subaru. It works fine down here where everything is as flat as a pool table but not a pretty picture as the trailer arm wrestles their "crossover" off the hill.